One of the best things I’ve read all year! This has everything I want in a novel—unforgettable characters, swoony slow-burn romance, a plot that keeps you frantically turning the pages. This one hit me in all the feels.

FABLE is a fascinating YA fantasy that takes on a sea voyage. Fable is a young woman whose father left her on a remote island after a devastating shipwreck that killed her mother. She has scraped by for years, bartering with the trading ships to get coins for the raw metal around the island as a dredger. She almost has enough coin to barter her passage on one of the trading ships, which she hopes to use so that she can find her father and prove her worthiness.

However, word is spreading among the other dredgers about her coin, and when she is attacked, she flees for her life, heading to a ship she has come to know for trading. Once onboard, her journey is sure to be difficult and certainly unexpected.

What I loved: The world building is lush and the whole book is quite atmospheric. I got lost in this other world with its sea faring trades and intense rules. I loved Fable, her memories, and the way that things are explained as we need them. The story flows so well that I was surprised by how quickly I was moving through the pages. The crew of the ship she finds contained characters that were highly intriguing, and I loved the shroud of mystery around them all. As we learn more about them, I wanted to know everything. Such highly compelling characters are included throughout the book, and it made me enjoy it all the more.

This is the best book I've read by Young yet, and I am so excited that it will be part of a series. As a warning, there is a cliffhanger at the end of this one, so be prepared to eagerly await the next installment.

Final verdict: Lush, atmospheric, and with compelling characters, FABLE is the start to an exciting new YA fantasy series that I cannot wait to continue. Highly recommend for fans of THE LAST VOYAGE OF POE BLYTHE and/or ALL THE STARS AND TEETH.

Please note that I received an ARC from the publisher through netgalley. All opinions are my own.

Welcome to a world made dangerous by the sea and by those who wish to profit from it. Where a young girl must find her place and her family while trying to survive a world built for men.

Take a high seas adventure with me in a world filled with pirates, treasure and plot twists.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Wednesday Books for gifting me a complimentary copy of this book via NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Fable has a dream of a world she thought she understood. Getting off of the Island her father abandoned her on and join him on his ship as part of his crew. But Fable doesn’t truly understand the world she lives in. Four years on her Island has changed many things she thought she knew. Now she has to fight for her dreams and her life. And protect her heart at all costs.

This novel reads like an adventure. With a few flashback chapters in between, this single Point of view story will consume you, captivate you and ensnare you to this world. With some very interesting plot twists, I absolutely cannot wait to see what the second book holds. Unlike most series, which usually dedicates a large part of the book to setting and world-building, this book throws you directly into the thick of things. Flashbacks help set the atmosphere. Where do I sign up to form part of this crew?

Descriptive doesn’t even begin to do justice to this book. I am really critical of water-themed books because of my love for the ocean. You really have to go all out to bring the underwater magical world alive on paper. And boy, has Young blown my mind. I felt like I experienced every moment on and below water. Her easy to follow narrative and style had me blazing through this book. I just couldn’t get enough.

“My mother called it touching the soul of the storm. When it came upon us like that, she was taking us into her heart and letting us see her.” – Fable, Adrienne Young

Welcome to the world of Pirates and seafarers. It’s cut-throat and lonely, and the only way to survive is to keep your walls up. Worldbuilding on the ocean can be tricky. Seas are unpredictable and the Islands are unknown. So I absolutely loved being able to fall into this world with both feet and feel like I have been there my entire life. Rich and descriptive, I felt like I was experiencing the world above and below in vivid colours and dimensions.

Uncompromising strength and female-empowering characters had me devouring this book. I absolutely lived for the adventure, the splendour and the action. This book is everything a pirate loving, strong-headed girl could want. Single Point of View, easy to follow narrative, this book is such a great escape from reality, I feel like I have been on an adventure.

“And there, in the twinkling lantern light, was the only future I had waiting for me.” – Fable, Adrienne Young

Character development is always tricky to evaluate in a series. Over arcing development is more important than just singular development. Here we get one piece of the puzzle. We cannot judge the big picture on a singular piece. That being said, keeping the time frame in mind of the story in this book – it plays out over about 2 weeks, you can see a definite shift in dynamics between characters, inner turmoil and slight but definitive growth. It’s not much, but at the end of the day who we meet in this book has to measure against the version of them in the last book in order for us to truly evaluate character development.

If you love the Sea witch by Sarah Henning, you HAVE TO pick up a copy of this book. Trust me, you will regret it if you don’t.

This was my first book by this author, It was pretty enjoyable. I would give this book a 4.5 star rating! It was a pretty Quick and easy read!

4.5⭐️

“Keep your knife where you can reach it.
Never, ever owe anyone anything.
Nothing is free.
Always construct a lie from the truth.
Never, under any circumstances, reveal what or who matters to you”.

After the death of her mother, Fable is left behind by her sea captain father on a treacherous island of pirates and thieves where it’s every man for themself. After fending for herself for four long years, she finally seizes the opportunity to escape in hopes of reclaiming her rightful place at her father’s side. After earning her place aboard The Marigold, Fable’s journey is only just getting started as she becomes entangled with the ship’s crew, dangerous rivals, and Mother Nature herself.

I had previously read the author’s debut book “Sky in the Deep” and remember being underwhelmed. I felt like that book had so much potential, but it just wasn’t there yet. Young really upped her game with “Fable”. It completely blew me away and I was hooked from the very first chapter!

I loved the world building in this one. It felt gritty and atmospheric. This book kept me on my toes because in this world you’re always waiting for the other shoe to drop. I appreciated how Young took the time to go into some of the intricacies of how the world worked. I’ve recently read too many books where the authors just expect you to simply accept the way things work without putting the effort in to make it make sense for the readers.

It was a fast paced action read, I didn’t want to put it down. The only pitfall of this was that it made it a very plot driven rather than character driven story. I would have liked there to have just been a bit more.

Fable was just the protagonist I was hoping for. She is driven, intelligent, independent, and strong. You can’t help but root for her. There is no special snowflake syndrome here. She takes the hand she is dealt and rolls with the punches. Sometimes literally.

There is romance in the book, but it is not the main focus of the story (which was refreshing). However, the love story between Fable and West had all the elements to be an epic slow-burn, but it just wasn’t developed enough. I wanted to feel the pining. Their romance was built on appreciation for seeing how the other person acts from afar, but they never had enough real conversations and interactions for it to feel earned. West was written as so stand-offish that I felt like we didn’t really get to know him. Which in the context of the book it made sense, but from a character standpoint it felt lacking. The romance was a rather predictable, but I enjoyed it all the same.

The crew was serving me some “Six of Crows” vibes and I was here for it. I just hope we get more of them in the next book. I’d love to see them developed a bit more fully. But I loved seeing how their relationship with Fable grew and developed over the course of the book.

Just do yourself a favor and READ THIS BOOK. It will not disappoint! It was easily one of the best books I’ve read all year!

My thanks to NetGalley and St. Martins Press/Wednesday books for the eARC! I have my fingers crossed for Namesake, I need it like I need air

I cannot thank you enough for giving me the chance to read a e-ARC of Fable. I was super excited for this book, as I have read some of the other books by this author. Young has an amazing writing style and is always descriptive in her story telling.

Fable was an excellent read. It was bit slow in the beginning, though that ended up being the perfect speed to give a little bit of detail about Fable. It was exciting from the beginning, all the way to the end. All the characters are well written and are relatable. These characters felt like real people. I like how Young gave each person their own little story line, which tied into the main one. Having the reasons why Fable, Saint, West, Willa and everyone else is doing the things they are doing is part of what makes these characters relatable. The fact that there was romance that didn't end up becoming the main theme made this book all the better.
The overall world building was amazing. I wasn't left wondering what something looks like or where the characters are. This world was easy to imagine.
A lot of the time, I couldn't predict what was going to happen. I didn't see what would happen with Saint, Zola or Clove. While something big was going to happen with Zola, I didn't see it coming, especially at the end of the book.
This book was amazing and congratulations to Young for creating such an amazing world and cast of characters.

Thank you net galley for the advance reader copy of this novel. This was a YA fantasy novel that kind of reminded me of the book Daughter of the pirate king. This novel was excellent although i didn't realize it was a duology until I was nearing the end and knew the story would not wrap up. I enjoyed the grit that Table shows in this novel and am cheering her on. Great read!!!!

It took me a little bit to get into this book, for some reason. But once I did, I couldn’t put it down and read it in two sittings, only broken up by my overwhelming need for sleep.

Fable lives a tough life, working hard for everything she has, with no one to trust and no safety net. She relies on her ability to free dive and dredge for gems to sell, so that she can survive and save up enough to escape Jeval, a dangerous island that her father abandoned her on after her mother died four years ago. She lives by a code of rules her father taught her:

“Keep your knife where you can reach it. Never, ever owe anyone anything. Nothing is free. Always construct a lie from a truth. Never, under any circumstances, reveal what or who matters to you.”

After finally saving enough, she manages to get herself off the island with the help of a trader, but Fable quickly realizes that nothing is what it appears to be. And the world has become much more dangerous than it was four years ago.

I was impressed at how the author managed to convey so much seafaring information and make it (mostly) understandable to someone with absolutely zero knowledge of ships. The descriptions were so vivid that I could almost feel myself sliding around the deck of a ship during a storm, and experience the burning in my lungs during a free dive.

Fable herself is a complex character — she’s smart, strong, self-sufficient, and tough, but she’s also sensitive and cries when she feels strong emotion. She grew up in a difficult environment and hasn’t had anyone to rely on but herself since her mother died. I wanted to see her succeed from early on, and loved that even when circumstances knocked her down, she always picked herself up and kept going. The rest of the crew was interesting, and I couldn’t wait to figure out what their deal was. Everyone keeps their secrets guarded closely in the Narrows, because what people know about you can be used against you.

There’s one part in the story that felt a little rushed to me, and that is the romance. I wish there would have been more development in it. It kind of popped up out of the blue, after all this tension. I got the feeling that Fable might have had romantic feelings for someone, but there were no signs that it was reciprocated until suddenly … it was.

The book was fast-paced and there was definitely no shortage of action. Every time I thought I had something figured out, the story took a sideways turn and surprised me. I loved that the majority of the story was unpredictable. The biggest thing that I didn’t like was that it ended on a big cliffhanger, and didn’t really wrap up any of the loose ends. Unfortunately, the next book in the duology doesn’t come out until March 2021, and it isn’t available for request on NetGalley. I’ve wished for it, so 🤞🏻!

I really enjoyed this book.
I loved the setting and the vibe of the book. You really could give me anything ‘piratey’ and I’d be on board.
I do think the characterisation could come off a little flat, I think that was a huge weakness as I did like the characters just that they felt underdeveloped and needed just something a little ‘more’ to make me really become invested in the story.
The writing was wonderful and really drew you in. A very accessible and fun style while still creating an interesting world.

Against the odds this girl has made it. Her father abandoned her, right after her mother dies, on an island known for its thieves and hardly no food. This book had me hooked i cant wait to be able to read book 2

The next Adrienne Young book! While everyone love Sky in the Deep, I feel like I'm the only one who liked The Girl the Sea Gave Back lol. But this is a whole new series with a whole new group of complex characters that might be in even more constant danger than Eelyn and the vikings.

Now, before I give away the plot, let's get to the review!

One warning before we start talking characters and things: Fable ends on a pretty big cliffhanger. Like if this was a TV show finale, people would be pissed they had to wait 3-6 months to find out what happens. Luckily, the next book, Namesake, comes out next year so it's not too long a wait. If you want to wait until both books are out before you start reading...I would not blame you.

OK, on to Fable!

It all starts with Fable, a teenage girl who is stuck on an island where the mentality is very much survive-or-die. How did she end up on this island? Her father left her there. They ended up shipwrecked nearby and not only did Fable's mother die, her father decides the best place for her is a dangerous island where she knows no one, is alone, just lost her mother, and has to struggle to survive. Yeah...super nice guy, but we'll get to that later.

Despite all the odds, Fable is surviving. And she's been saving her money so she can buy passage off the island. She just needs a few more jobs dredging and she's good. But things never work out that way, right? And Fable lands herself in trouble and needing to flee ASAP.

So, she runs to the ship of a man, West, who buys her pyre and underwater treasures. He'll help her, right? Well....

Let's just say he and his crew almost push her over the edge of the ship to meet her fate. But something makes West stop and allow her on board. He gives her the safety of his ship and they sail away.

THAT is nowhere near the end of the danger in this book

Lets talk about the crew!
West: captain, leader, big brother, would probably sacrifice himself for the rest of the crew

Willa: big sister, fierce, loyal, second-in-command, wants revenge

Hamish: accountant, sometimes threatening, loyal as hell

Paj: navigator, sometimes suspicious, loyal, in love with Auster

Auster: stryker (handles nets and traps), gives Fable her first job on the ship, kind, loyal, in love with Paj

They are a complicated bunch and it will make you love them all the more for it. They've all come from nothing, escaped something, and now they're a family and yes, let's sob together.

But where are they headed with Fable? Well, Fable is looking for her dad and since the crew of the Marigold is on their way to the Narrows where she knows he'll be, it works out for everyone.

Unfortunately, Fable doesn't know everything about this crew, about this ship, and who they work for. Who they owe money to.

Eventually, they get to the Narrows and Fable sees her father for the first time in years. I won't giveaway what happens at the reunion because it's beyond epic but you can probably guess from his behavior before that he's not all affection and hugs. He's a bastard. But Fable has been hardened by life. She's not a naive girl. And she's got a plan to get back at him and help her new friends all at once. That is...if it doesn't kill them all first.

MAGIC
Ok, there is some kind of magic going on with Fable. And maybe not just her. People in this world can hold their breath for A LONG TIME. They can expand their lungs to hold just the right amount. It's immensely cool. Fable is also a gem sage which means she can read gems, feel their properties, know things about them. And holy hell, it's fascinating but it's also quite dangerous to be a gem sage in this world

I'm also obsessed with how water-centric this book is. You would never guess that from the cover. Itotally thought this was a fairy tale retelling or something in the forest. It screams MERIDA. But I LOVE a book that takes place on the sea. It gives me life and makes not living on the beach or being able to go there more often actually bearable.

Specific scene I loved: There is a point where the crew needs a new sail for the ship and the way they get it is so goddamn fun...I can't even take it. It's the moment you want in every found family adventure book. I smiled while reading it.

Things I didn't love: I don't believe in the romance between West and Fable that eventually happens. I didn't get the build-up I wanted. I needed more interactions between them. More tension. More explicit "oh shit" feelings coming from both of them and I didn't get that. By the time the romance was full-on, I didn't want it. I wanted an adventure book about friends who will kill for each other. If the romance wasn't there (and yes, I know I'm a huge romance fan), I'd probably be giving this a higher rating.

THE CLIFFHANGER
Ok, obviously I'm not giving this away. But be wary of who they say is dead. That's all I'll say.

Overall, Fable is a hell of an adventure. There were a couple of moments where I was meh or wanted the pace to move a little faster, but as a whole, this is a book I'd read again. I'm giving it 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Fable by Adrienne Young comes out on September 1, 2020

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martins Press/Wednesday Books for the free eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Fable has a gorgeous cover but, even better, this first part of a duology (yay! I hope this is a YA trend that continues) is flat out fantastic! I can't wait for teens and adult YA readers to connect with this wonderful book!

2.5 stars.

Fable lives on the island of Jeval, working as a dredger--someone who dives into the ocean and finds precious stones to sell for money. Life is hard, especially as one of the few girls on the island, but Fable knows that she can survive. She's been there for four years, after all, and her only obstacle to leaving and finding the person who put her on Jeval, her father Saint, is getting enough money.
Fable makes it off the island fairly early into the novel, at which the book turns into a sea-faring story instead. The ship she joins is full of traders, and most of the novel follows her as she gets to know the crew and uncover the secrets their captain, West, is hiding.
The original reason I took an ARC of this and the highlight of the book is the writing style. It's pretty good, especially for YA, and carries the rather boring plot and characters. I did have trouble figuring out what was going on, notably in the beginning--nothing is described enough to get an idea of what Jeval is like, and I had trouble following the action because it wasn't clear where Fable was going or why she was doing most of what she was doing--but this got much more manageable once Fable leaves Jeval.
As mentioned, the plot is pretty boring. With its premise, you'd think there's some sort of revenge story going on here between Fable and her father, but most of the book is composed of sailing or visiting towns and having mundane things happen. There are a few fantastical elements, but this is mostly historical fiction in a made-up world instead of a fantasy-pirate hybrid story. Even the villains don't get much screen time compared to the crew members, leading to a story that doesn't have much effective tension.
The plot could've been saved by good characters, but most of the characters here are pretty flat. Fable herself is somewhat complex, but the crew members besides Willa and West have zero personality. I liked Willa, and felt like she had good chemistry with Fable, but I quickly grew bored of West, whose gimmick is that he's stoic on the outside and cares a lot for his crew and can't bear the idea of losing them on the inside. What a shocker.
The worldbuilding is pretty mediocre. There's basically no magic, and all the places the crew visits barring Jeval blur together. There's nothing unique or interesting about them. There's not even a map to follow the journey on.

So, it's nothing to write home about. I'm sure many people will enjoy this and let the writing style make up for its shortcomings as a story, but I was just bored by the end. I will not be continuing with this series.

This book is a wonderfully atmospheric pirate-like story about our main character and her fight to survive in a dangerous world and eventually find her way back to the father that abandoned her on this island. Along the way to finding her way back to her father, she finds herself in imminent danger and is taken in by a man she trades gems with. West and his crew are traders who all grew up together, they only trust each other and so they have a hard time trusting Fable, who has to do some dangerous things to prove herself to them. Once she traces down her father, she learns some harsh truth about him and why he abandoned her. This is a perilous world for someone like Fable, and she ends up finding out the hard way just how dangerous it is- especially when you are the daughter of one of the most notorious pirates in the business.

One of the first things I should point out in this book is that it doesn't explicitly state that it's a pirate novel (they are called traders- but many are gang like), but it certainly is, I was getting major Pirates of the Caribbean vibes. The inclusion of the gems and the slight ‘powers’ she has in feeling the vibrations of each gem lends a slight magical element to the story without making it a fantasy.
I really enjoyed Fable as a character and could empathize with her struggles. The relationship she develops with the members of the trading vessel makes everything feel super cozy with there still being drama and action when they make port. West is a very mysterious character and the romance that ends up happening between him and Fable is just so pure and I actually loved their romance (I typically don't like romance in books but this was done very well). I mean, the shipwreck scene!!!! And of course, the ending was a cliffhanger! But also a great segway into the next book in the series.

I'm so looking forward to the next book, I absolutely love this world, the vibe it gave off, the action, the characters, and the romance that was taking place.

4.5 stars, I really loved this book and would highly recommend.

** ARC provided by St. Martins Press & Wednesday Books via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

My Review:⭐️⭐⭐️⭐️.5/ 5 stars

Oh my… how do I even begin? I did not know what to expect… Essentially Adrienne Young made pirates sexy and left me begging for more. This story is about Fable who, a 17 year old woman who was left on Jeval (harsh land filled with thieves) by her father, Saint after a tragic storm killed her mother and crew of their ship, the Lark. Saint is one of the most powerful traders in the Narrows and everyone fears him. Fable’s test is to survive and find her own way off the island to Ceros. His message was clear: Trust no one, and not to tell anyone she is his daughter for her own protection. Fable eventually finds someone who will take her to Ceros: West, a young helmsman of his own small vessel. She quickly learns who she can trust and who not to… I absolutely fell in love with this book and the characters. The chemistry between West and Fable jumped off the page, and they don’t even speak much. Her relationship with her father brought me to near tears… this poor woman just wants a family! Highly recommended!

Thank you to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review! This book is out Sept 1 - and I already CANNOT wait for the sequel.

I am a huge fan of Adrienne Young, so when this description was announced, I was all over it! As an educator and librarian, this book has everything. The plot and character development are so well done, creating an immersive, enriching world. Add in the pirate-y feel, and I was 100% there for it! I can’t wait for the next book!

I absolutely and totally loved this book. The storyline was interesting, the characters grabbed you, and the writing was superb. The ending was abrupt and I can’t wait to find out what happens next in the story. Overall I absolutely loved this story.

I have a serious love/hate relationship with this book. It’s fast paced and action filled. The characters are so well written, especially Fable. She’s feisty and strong, yet has a hint of vulnerability to her. Don’t even get me started on West, the handsome, closed off pirate. Fable will hook you from the very first line and leave you hate screaming with that cliffhanger. Young’s best work to date and one of my favorite YA reads of this year, hands down.
I received a arc of Fable in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for providing an eARC of Fable in exchange for an honest review.

As a huge fan of Adrienne Young's previous books, I was DYING to read Fable from the moment it was announced, and especially once that swoon-worthy cover was revealed.

Those who love Young's richly descriptive writing and powerful characters will not be disappointed. Fable is a take-no-prisoners protagonist, fending for herself after being abandoned by her father on a cutthroat island where the only lucrative form of earning coppers is diving for precious crystals like pyre. Without spoiling too much, her circumstances abruptly change, and she trades her meager savings for passage on the Marigold, a ship helmed by a young man named West and crewed by a suspicious group of traders whose trust Fable must earn if she is to survive the voyage to the Narrows. It's obvious how much research Adrienne did as far as the sailing and diving lingo, but it's still written in such a way that those of us who have never sailed the high seas can still infer details from context clues.

If you want a high-seas adventure worthy of Pirates of the Caribbean with the slow-burn romance of many of our favorite YA novels, don't miss Fable, first in the Fable Duology (the second of which, Namesake, releases in only 6 months)! Fable releases on September 1, 2020 and is available from your usual book retailers! There's still time to enter Adrienne's preorder for special incentives!

3.75/5
Fable was a ride!
I initially will say that Sky in the Deep felt very rushed to me, so I've always been conflicted on whether I wanted to try another one of Adrienne's novels. I'm so excited I did because this book was hypnotic with the lush sea faring background and sarcastic retorts.
I'll forever give credit to Adrienne for her beautiful writing style. I loved this novel because I could picture everything in my mind down to the taste of the air. She's amazing with imagery and description without being too overwhelming and that's all I ever ask for. It's my favorite part of reading.
Now.. I'm always very particular about sea voyage stories, but Fable is definitely my favorite. The characters were dynamic, especially Willa (my fav!), and Fable was a great protagonist vying first for acceptance and then later on her own identity/ independence. She's cutthroat in many ways, but she does still have a heart of gold for those she us loyal too, which isn't many.
The incredibly fast paced ending and weird cut away scenes (I wanted to experience the dredge that happens later in the book!) are my biggest core complaints, but the romance did seem rushed after a certain point. It was fine up until the confession, and then I felt oddly about the two lovers. It went from natural to insta-love.
Overall, I'd recommend this story. I'm intrigued about what's going to happen to Fable, especially after the final line in the eARC. I have more questions than answers, and we cannot have that.